A spatial interface to twenty essays on the objects and themes of the exhibit as well as the objects and landmarks
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The important landmarks that stood at this important Broadway intersection over time and by site
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A look at the technical processes along with the men and women who made all these cultural commodities in New York
More informationAstral lamp with shade
1840–50
Glass, marble, brass
20 1/2 x 8 1/2 x 8 1/2 in. (52.1 x 21.6 x 21.6 cm)
The New-York Historical Society, Bequest of Mrs. F. MacDonald Sinclair (Jennie H. Sinclair), 1965.921
Oil lamps, such as this astral lamp, burned six to ten times brighter than ordinary candles. Also known as a “sinumbra,” Latin for “without shadow,” this type of lamp, unlike earlier versions, does not cast a shadow because the reservoir is located away from the flame. Astral lamps were ideal for illuminating the parlor, because they could be placed in the center of a table and provide good reading or viewing light for everyone seated around it. The pendant crystals enhanced the effect by increasing the amount of illumination.
— Kelsey Brow
